Strides Arcolab Ltd has announced pre-qualification of its anti-malarial product Artemether + Lumifantrine (AL) tablets by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
AL constitutes over 80 per cent of Artemesinin Combination Therapy (ACT) procured under Global Fund and other similar programmes. The benefits of ACTs are their high efficacy, fast action and reduced likelihood of developing resistance to the drug. WHO has advised that all malaria cases should be treated with ACT.
Over 300 million new malaria cases were reported in Africa alone in 2011. It is estimated that only about 10 per cent of the actual incidence gets reported. The ACT procurement plan for 2013 is estimated to be in the region of $450 million.
Commenting on the development, Manish Gupta, CEO-Pharma, Strides Arcolab said: “This approval is another initiative by Strides to make high quality, affordable medicines available in the African sub-continent and other middle-income countries and compliments our basket of products in the anti-HIV/AIDS and anti-TB therapies for these markets.”
With this approval, Strides becomes the only player to provide a complete treatment portfolio for major diseases such as HIV, TB and malaria, which continue to plague the low and middle-income countries.
The product will be manufactured at the company’s US-FDA approved and WHO pre-qualified facility in Bangalore. Supplies of the product will commence immediately.